Surviving in the Demon's Academy as a Human

As the grand hall filled with the roaring cheers of the demon crowd, Lilith led Aiden to their designated area near the stage. The room was massive, a gothic masterpiece of sharp architecture and dark enchantments. Glowing chandeliers floated midair, casting an eerie light across the faces of thousands of spectators, each one eager to see the rarest captured being presented to them. The air was thick with tension, excitement, and an undertone of cruelty that made Aiden's stomach churn.

The announcer, a lanky demon with six glowing eyes and a serpentine tongue, introduced the an entry, the crowd gasped. A massive iron cage was dragged onto the stage by a group of hulking ogres. Inside, a crystalline dragon writhed, its translucent scales shimmering like glass. The announcer's booming voice declared it to be one of the last of its kind, and the crowd erupted in applause.

The competition began, and one by one, competitors flaunted their captures. The stage was graced—or tainted—by horrifying spectacles. A demon noble presented a chimera-like creature stitched together with various monstrous parts, its grotesque limbs twitching as it growled weakly. Another flaunted a rare albino banshee trapped in a glass sphere, her wails muted by enchantments, her face a mix of anger and despair. The audience cheered wildly, their bloodlust and fascination unabashed.

Aiden kept his face neutral, though inside, he felt like getting dizzy. Lilith leaned in, her golden hair brushing his shoulder, her voice a mix of amusement and mischief. "Getting numb to it already? I'm impressed. I thought you'd start screaming by now."

"I'm not screaming," Aiden said flatly, his eyes locked on the stage. "But if I see innards, flesh and blood spreading over in the air I might consider."

"Oh" Lilith was amused to his answer. "If you see innards, flesh and blood spreading over in the air you might consider it?" Lilith seems to be amused with something but she keep those thoughts to herself "Very well, we will see if what you said will come true later on."

Lilith didn't speak anything after that but Aiden could feel that something is coming. A foreshadowing that he is not looking forward to.

As the announcer's voice echoed across the grand stage, a hush fell over the crowd. "And now, from the renowned House of Varyndral, Lady Morgana Ashthorne Varyndral presents her family's prized spoil… This," the announcer booms, "is Princess Seraphina Elenora Valcrest, the last princess to the Valcrest Kingdom. A treasure of the human world and once promised to the Messiah himself."

The crowd gasped as a tall, ethereal figure stepped forward, her chains clinking faintly with every movement. Seraphine was a vision of fallen grace, her silver hair cascading like a shattered halo around her shoulders, and her piercing blue eyes glowing with defiance.

She is breathtaking, with flowing silver hair, piercing blue eyes, and a regal posture that refuses to be diminished by her situation. Despite being captured she still wore an elaborate magnificent dress still bears the unmistakable emblem of a human kingdom. It was as if she didn't come here as a captive but a guest and if Aiden didn't knew the context then she might've mistaken her identity as a diplomat from the Humans. He couldn't help but compare the Princess to those figurines he saw in a collector's shelf, untouched and boxed. Whispers ripple through the crowd as demons murmur about her identity. 

"She's supposed to be his wife?" one demon sneers. "The so-called savior of humanity is losing his prizes to us now?"

Seraphina glares at the crowd, her chin high and her voice trembling with rage. "Laugh while you can, monsters. The Hero will come for me. And when he does, he will lay waste to all of you!"

Her words spark a mix of jeers and mocking applause, but Aiden is too focused on her to laugh. For the first time in this ridiculous parade, he feels something akin to sympathy. By the end he could see Seraphina unable to hold it and cried from receiving various mocks and insults into which the crowd further laughed. She was escorted out of the stage.

Aiden's thoughts wandered aimlessly as he tried to brace himself for whatever grotesque display would come next. He absentmindedly stared at the stage, his mind racing through scenarios, wondering what the next entry in this macabre competition would be. A monstrous chimera? A dragon dripping with venom? Or perhaps something even more unfathomable?

The announcer's voice boomed, cutting through his spiraling thoughts. "And now, from the esteemed House of Maltrix, the Daughter of the Crimson Abyss herself, Lady Lilith Maltrix, presents… her rarest living specimen!"

Aiden blinked, snapping to attention. He glanced at Lilith, expecting to see some ancient creature of myth or a terror dragged from the deepest pits of Hell. But instead, Lilith turned to him, her crimson eyes gleaming with mischief, her lips curling into a sly grin.

Aiden was looking forward to this, he will see if the thing that Lilith will bring would impress him, but if it did not he will tease her. Before Aiden could ask Lilith "It's you, Aiden," she said nonchalantly, as if she were announcing the weather.

His heart skipped a beat. "Wait. What? Me?"

Before he could even process the statement, let alone protest, a wave of realization hit him like a truck. "You're joking, right? You can't actually—"

Lilith didn't give him the luxury of finishing his sentence. She grabbed his hand, her grip firm and unyielding. The next thing he knew, a cold rush of energy enveloped him, the air crackling as they vanished in a blink.

In the span of a heartbeat, they reappeared under the blinding spotlight of the stage. The roar of thousands of demons erupted in a cacophony of gasps, murmurs, and mocking laughter. Aiden's stomach dropped as he found himself standing in front of the entire crowd, their grotesque faces lit with intrigue, disdain, or outright glee.

He turned to Lilith, panic written all over his face. "What in Hell's name are you doing?!"

Lilith leaned close, her voice barely a whisper but brimming with smug amusement. "Relax, Aiden. You're the star of the show. Just try not to look like a frightened puppy."

Aiden's fists clenched. "You can't just parade me around like some kind of trophy!"

Lilith smirked, raising her hand to silence the crowd. "Oh, but I can, darling."

Aiden sighed and accepted his fate, looking away. "I don't get it. What's the point of this?"

Lilith's crimson eyes gleamed with excitement. "The point, darling, is to prove your worth. Power and influence in Hell aren't earned with humility. It's all about spectacle, dominance, and—" she gestured dramatically toward the stage—"showing off what you've got."

"And I'm... part of this spectacle?" Aiden muttered, already knowing the answer.

Lilith grinned wickedly. "Oh, absolutely. You're the pièce de résistance."

Lilith glanced at the crowd, her golden hair and black horns catching the light in a way that made her look both angelic and menacing. Aiden could feel every eye in the room on him, their gazes burning with curiosity, envy, and malice.

As they stood at the center of the stage, the announcer gestured to Aiden with a flourish.

"Behold!" Lilith began, raising her hands dramatically. "Unlike these mundane trinkets and broken creatures, I present to you... a being from another dimension entirely! A human soul pulled from a world so foreign, it defies Hell's comprehension!"

She gestured toward Aiden, who stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to do. The crowd murmured in confusion, their eyes scanning him.

"What's so special about that?!" a voice from the crowd heckled.

Lilith smirked. "Observe his strange garments. Witness his alien contraption!" She motioned toward the gun tucked into Aiden's waistband.

The crowd murmured, their reactions mixed. Some were in awe, others skeptical, and a few visibly unimpressed. Aiden felt a bead of sweat slide down his neck, but he straightened his posture, remembering Lilith's earlier advice. Act like you belong.

Aiden started to pull the gun out for display, but before he could, a demon stepped forward—a hulking student with horns that spiraled like drills and a perpetual sneer. "That's it? A suit and a toy?"

The crowd laughed, and Lilith raised an eyebrow at the insult. Before she could respond, the demon advanced on Aiden, cracking his knuckles.

"Let's see if your 'alien contraption' can actually do anything. Show me, human! Or are you just another weakling who's going to run back to your master?"

Aiden hesitated, but Lilith grinned wickedly. "Go on, Aiden. Show them." Lilith took a step back and let Aiden wield the 'toy'.

The demon lunged, a mass of muscle and overconfidence. Aiden barely had time to aim before pulling the trigger. The sound of the gunshot rang out, deafening the courtyard. The bullet struck the demon square in the chest, 

All Aiden could see a demon lunging to him. When the bullet hit the Demon, his entire torso expanded like a air hot balloon that expanded his skin. His skin was so stretched that he could see the veins bulging until a sound of pop was heard. That sound reminded him of when a balloon fully filled with water was hit by a needle only this time... the Demon's blood and along with his numerous innards that comes in all shapes and sizes launched all across the space. The blood staining Aiden with some few in the crowd. It happened so fast.

The crowd fell silent.